What's under your hood . . .

and what are you going to do with it?

By Hammer Nutrition

Your owner's manual for your body
might look something like this.

Note:
1. It should be noted that our fiber types are individually and genetically pre-
determined. As a result,
most find that they are better suited for activities that play to their fiber type composition. However,
this isn't to say that there is no room for improvement in those sports that depend on a fiber type
with which an individual is not naturally endowed.
2. Individuals can produce varying amounts of force with every skeletal muscle. The amount of force
generated depends upon the number of muscle fibers recruited to perform the task. Increasing
nerve stimulation results in the recruitment of more muscle fibers of all types. The more muscle
fibers recruited, the greater the force produced.

The tables and information above relate to the
voluntary muscle contractions
we use all day long. The muscle
contraction elicited by a Compex NMES
(neuromuscular electrical stimulation)
device is involuntary. The recruitment
pattern of muscle fibers begins close
to the Compex pads that adhere to the
skin and appears as a slight twitch. As
the stimulus is increased, the electrical
stimulation penetrates deeper into the
belly of the muscle and the contraction
becomes stronger and stronger. That
is quite different from a voluntary
contraction. Also, the types of muscle
fibers recruited are different for an
involuntary contraction. Nerve types
determine what kinds of muscle fibers
are stimulated. For instance, all slow
twitch motor neurons stimulate only
slow twitch muscle fibers. Compex is
programmed to stimulate certain kinds
of motor neurons.

To reiterate, all muscle fiber types
are recruited during voluntary force
production. Only one kind of muscle
fiber is recruited during an involuntary
Compex-generated contraction. When
training with a Compex, the obvious
advantage is in working specific targeted
muscle fibers.

Practically speaking, what can be done
with a Compex to improve performance,
and when should it be done? A particular
attribute can be trained with a Compex;
therefore, an elite distance runner could
train for bursts of speed needed as a race
strategy to separate from competitors.
Perhaps the distance runner can hold
a terrific pace on the flats, but gets
dropped by competitors on the hills.
Even though the elite distance runner
has predominantly slow twitch muscle
fibers, the fast twitch muscle fibers she
has can be selectively trained. Fatigue
is minimized because this training does
not tax the cardiovascular system; it
also trains only one of the three muscle
fiber types, and doesn't involve the
costly footfalls that limit the amount of
running that can be absorbed over time.

While I've never seen it recommended,
it seems reasonable to me to assume
that more than one muscle fiber type
on a muscle group can be trained on the
same day with the Compex. This always
happens during a conventional workout.
Since overall fatigue is minimized, why
not train more than one muscle fiber
type in back-to-back sessions? With
one placement of pads, you can train for
more than one specific adaptation. I will
give it a try, and I'd love to hear results
from any of you who have started this
kind of training. Remember, gains from
strength training with the Compex are
quickly gained and quickly lost. Strength
training can and should be maintained
all year long. This is particularly
important for those 40 years old and
older who experience ever-increasing
degrees of age-related muscle loss. The
best way to counteract this natural
occurrence is with strong, regular
muscular contractions. Get busy with the
Compex, and keep your body well-tuned
and running efficiently. HN